11/07/2013

Concealed Carry Scenario, What would You do?

Would you conceal carry a gun you had borrowed but had never used?[tweet this]

This is a scenario that seem pretty plausible for a woman who lives in an area like Atlanta. If you live in a city like mine, you can drive 30 minutes in pretty much any direction and find yourself in a decently rural area. Even if the main roads are lit and well traveled, unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances can leave a woman stranded and forced to turn to a stranger for help. In such a situation, I prefer to be armed, just to keep the scales balanced and/or in my favor. If I were planning to take a drive into an unfamiliar area, especially if I were going to be driving at night, I would pack my carry weapon. However, I can see how many life-events could leave me unarmed.

What if I forget my gun, or if my regular concealed carry was in the shop? Many reasons could leave my CCW unavailable for some reason. If you had access to another gun, a gun you had never shot and knew almost nothing about... (Let's say it belonged to a trusted friend who offered to let you borrow it) ... Would you take it and carry it for yourself defense?

Consider all of the variables in this situation:

You may have to wear the friend's holster

You don't know how this gun has been maintained

You don't know the age or anything else about the rounds in the gun

You can see if the gun has the external safety and possibly dry fire the gun but would you?

17 comments:

Aubrey
said...

I totally would, because the few friends who would offer to lend me a weapon also care enough about me to be sure I'm checked out on it before handing it over. I'd do the same for them - no way would I hand it over without first ejecting the mag, ejecting the chambered cartridge, and showing them how it works.

Age of rounds. I just bought some soviet ammo for my rifle, they were 1977 manufacture, not a single issue. I've fired ammo in the 70 year old range before, age of the ammo isn't a huge issue unless you store it underwater...

Ok, but then why is it recommended that defensive ammo be replaced every 6 months to a year? Because age can diminish the power of the powder, as can moisture. Also, maybe a friends gun is loaded with extra hot rounds, for which I might not be ready... In an emergency situation I prefer as few variables as possible

Here's my worry: my carry gun has no safety, my boyfriend's gun has one, I trust he maintains his firearm, but if I do not remember to switch off the safety, then when I pull the trigger in my self defense, I may hear the dreaded CLICK and no bang...this would put me in a more danger than if I had not introduced a gun to the situation

I don't believe that any handgun should have an external safety except for 1911s, due to the nature of single action semi-auto handguns. The firearms that I do own that have external safeties I simply don't use (the safeties not the guns). I never put my full trust in a mechanical safety which will eventually break. Depending on the gun, if you don't put on the safety then you won't have to worry about dealing with the safety at all.

I have yet to find a hand gun I can not operate, but I answered the question from my perspective and I am more mechanically inclined than most men I know. Handguns are incredibly simple machines. It only takes a few minutes to familiarize your self with a handgun (unless it is something really off the wall). For semi's Drop the mag, then over hand rack (check the chamber) and then get a feel for it and load up and move on. For revolvers Release the cylinder and swing the crane out then dump the rounds. Now familiarize yourself with it. If you can't do that to any gun you come across you should not be carrying one in the first place.

That recommendation is usually from the ammo companies and they are in business to sell ammo. On the other hand it is good to shoot some of your self defense ammo from time to time because it may print slightly differently from you practice ammo.

I don't see how you could be in more danger after pulling the trigger and it not going off than if you "had not introduced a gun to the situation". You pulled the trigger because you were already going to be hurt if you didn't pull the trigger.

I would hope I could borrow something similar to what I've shot in the past. At the moment, that list isn't very long, but I've shot a couple different .38 snub nose revolvers, two different 9 mm, a .40, several types of .22s, several types of .380s and a 22lr rifle. I would hope something a friend might have would be well maintained.

Being a guy I still have to give you a reply I've known many people who work in dangerous parts of the world. Al have said you should train enough that if you carry a gun with a safety you should be confident enough to take the safety off as you holster the gun. More then a few have got killed because they have failed to take off the safety